NEWS/RUMORS/DISCUSSION Thread

Wonder if they wanted to pull Cruz away from Toronto and get his thoughts before committing so much money to Diaz.
Cruz's guys have been flipped in some high profile trades recently

 

I'm pre-breaking some news here:

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2015/11/11/hitting-coach-turner-ward-leaves-the-diamondbacks/

Expect him to be our new hitting coach, heard it here 1st.

 

The guy who got his ass kicked in the brawl?

 

Has no bearing on his coaching so who gives a rats ass.

 

http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/18765768/v421502983/top-international-prospects-yusniel-diaz-of

 

LMAO!!

 

Diaz looks like the shit. Good shit. BRING ME ALL THE CUBANS.

(yes racist)

 

Whoever the hitting coach is, I sure hope he can cut down on our strikeouts.

 

See, just like I said. The Dodgers would make three deals within hours of me posting about how there would be a deal or two in all of baseball before the holiday. As for the Cubans, that is awesome to see that they are not done yet. So many of those kids are getting out now and they are all different ages, so it makes sense to blow Int'l budget out of the water. I wonder if this is another reason for the team to cut back the payroll this year. Spending what could be close to 100 mil on prospects is a bit of a risky endeavor.

 

I doubt it. We knew they were gonna cut payroll at some point, it looks like they are trying to set themselves up to to get under the luxury tax threshold (which will probably go up under the new CBA) after 2018, at which point, the contracts of Ethier, Crawford, Gonzalez and McCarthy will have expired, and Kershaw will probably opt-out, that clears about $100M at the end 2017 and '18.

 

Dodgers have checked in on Aroldis Chapman
By Steve Adams | MLB Trade Rumors — 23 minutes ago

Though the rotation is a more obvious area of need in Los Angeles, the Dodgers have nonetheless checked in on Aroldis Chapman, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. L.A. has recently been connected to Darren O’Day as well, and Heyman writes that they’re “very determined” to upgrade their bullpen however they can.

The Dodgers already possess one of baseball’s best closers in the form of Kenley Jansen It’s understandable that they’d be perhaps interested in acquiring help at the back end of the ‘pen because Jansen is a free agent next season, but so, too, is Chapman, thus making it a bit more of a questionable fit than a closer with more team control (e.g. Ken Giles, who is also rumored to be available).

Jansen and Chapman would, however, represent perhaps the most dominant late-inning duo in all of Major League Baseball, albeit at a highly premium cost. Chapman projects to earn $12.9MM this winter in his final offseason of arbitration eligibility, while Jansen is projected at a slightly more affordable (but still expensive, relative to his peers) salary of $11.4MM. The Dodgers typically operate with less regard for finances than any other club, however, so the notion of spending nearly $25MM on two relievers in a single season isn’t as outlandish for them as it would be another team.

Heyman does note that the Dodgers’ level of interest in Chapman isn’t yet known, though Chapman isn’t the type of player a team would kick the tires on in hopes of landing him at a bargain rate; president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and GM Farhan Zaidi know full well that Chapman will be moved for a relatively steep price. The Reds reportedly are seeking controllable, MLB-ready talent in exchange for Chapman, and Cincinnati president of baseball operations Walt Jocketty recently expressed hope that the Reds will get a trade worked out prior to the Winter Meetings, which begin in two weeks.

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I wouldn't get excited, but they seem to be casting a wide-net.

 

Hmm this is the 1st time that I've seen Dodgers/Chapman rumors
I don't even remember seeing any at the deadline or the year before.
But good, and they should have interest

 

Also, screw O'Day and the Nats
Deal for Chapman

 

Sign me up for Cleveland (Carrasco) or Chicago (Quintana), less so on the other 3. Though I would be all for Ken Giles for some prospects.

Five potential trade destinations for Yasiel Puig
by David Schoenfield | ESPN — 3 minutes ago

On Saturday, Buster Olney wrote about the possibility of the Los Angeles Dodgers trading mercurial right fielder Yasiel Puig. The trade rumors for Puig will get even hotter after Andy Van Slyke -- father of Dodgers outfielder Scott Van Slyke -- implied in a radio interview that Clayton Kershaw had said the team should trade Puig:

This is a problem, of course, the biggest name on the team calling out Puig, even if through the unusual circumstance of a father of another player.

The Dodgers backhandedly admitted Puig needed to upgrade his work ethic at the general managers meetings earlier this month when president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said they wanted him to lose weight.

So there continue to be a lot of indications that Dodgers players and staffers are pretty sick of Puig, and sources within the organization say the team’s leadership above Friedman is much more open to the idea of moving Puig than it would’ve been, say, 18 months ago.

This is a classic situation when being a big-market, big-budget team such as the Dodgers has advantages, because you really don’t have to worry about maximizing value in trades the way that someone such as Oakland’s Billy Beane or Cleveland's Chris Antonetti does, or the way that Friedman did when he ran the Tampa Bay Rays.

Of course, the Dodgers aren't going to give away Puig just to get rid of him, considering his ability and contract (he makes $7.2 million, $8.2 million and $9.2 million the next three seasons and then has an arbitration season in 2019). Also, keep in mind the Dodgers outfield isn't necessarily a strength at the moment: Joc Pederson slumped big time in the second half; Andre Ethier had a good season but will be 34 and in 2014 was worth minus-0.1 WAR; Carl Crawford was hurt much of 2015; Van Slyke is a platoon player; Enrique Hernandez rode a high BABIP against left-handers to produce good numbers in a part-time role. There's depth in numbers but some concerns with everybody.

What the Dodgers could do, however, is trade Puig and then sign a free-agent outfielder such as Alex Gordon or Jason Heyward. Here are five potential trade partners:

1. Cleveland Indians
Colleague Jim Bowden mentioned this idea and it would be maximum value for the Dodgers: Puig for Carlos Carrasco. In fact, Carrasco's contract is so team friendly -- $37.5 million for five more seasons, a total that includes two team options -- that the Dodgers may actually have to sweeten the pot a bit. Carrasco went 14-12 with a 3.63 ERA but struck out 216 in 183.2 innings. His FIP was 2.84, so his peripheral numbers are terrific. This could be the best match as the Dodgers would want immediate help over prospects and the Indians are looking for offense. Having Terry Francona around to manage Puig also could be a plus.

2. Chicago White Sox
There were reports the other day that the White Sox would consider trading Avisail Garcia, which ... umm, I doubt anyone wants Garcia. But that report shows the White Sox believe Garcia isn't the long-term solution in right field. The White Sox finished next to last in the American League in walks and OBP, so Puig would provide some much-needed improvement there. The guy the Dodgers would want: Jose Quintana, the most underrated starter in baseball. He has been worth 12.9 WAR over the past three seasons, hitting 200 innings each season. After giving up 23 home runs in 2013, he has allowed just 26 the past two seasons combined. Considering he also is signed through 2020 (including two team options) and is thus similar in value to Carrasco, I think the Dodgers would have to sweeten this pot as well, but they could trade from their depth and that's what the White Sox need.

3. Philadelphia Phillies
The rebuilding Phillies have only four outfielders on their 40-man roster right now and two of them are former third baseman Cody Asche and former shortstop Roman Quinn. Puig is exactly the kind of player they should take a chance on, although they would probably do it only in a buy-low scenario. I'm not sure there's a match here, however, except maybe Ken Giles, who would provide a top setup man for Kenley Jansen. The Dodgers aren't going to trade Puig straight up for a reliever and would certainly prefer a starter over bullpen help, so this deal would have to be expanded in some form.

4. Seattle Mariners
The Mariners need another outfielder and considering they now have the longest playoff drought in the majors, gambling on Puig would be interesting. Like the Phillies, a match is difficult given Seattle's lack of depth across the major league roster and a bad farm system. The Mariners would be reluctant to deal the upside of Taijuan Walker but that's what it would take -- and Walker alone might not be enough.

5. Baltimore Orioles
Have you seen their outfielders? Outside of Adam Jones it's a pretty sorry group. The Orioles ranked 24th in the majors in wOBA from their outfield, even with Jones. The Orioles have never seemed to completely believe in Kevin Gausman, so maybe there's something there, although that would be a big sell-low by the Dodgers. Zach Britton still has three years until free agency, but again, it will take more than even a dominant closer like Britton to get Puig.

​

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2015/11/offseason-outlook-los-angeles-dodgers-5.html

 

Hard to feel sorry for him, not with that contract.

 

FWIW.....

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 2h2 hours ago
No bids on Ah-Seop Son, per Korean media. Next to be posted: Power-hitting 3B Jae-gyun Hwang, who has drawn interest from Dodgers, others.
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Just connecting the dots, maybe the Dodgers would be interested in him at 3B and move Turner to 2B.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.cgi?id=hwang-001jae

 

Power hitting? 88 homers in 4000 PAs? 415 career slugging in the Korean league? Naww man

 

There's always to Cobain option to get out of Seattle.